Disabled people still find a lot to shout about

THE statue of Alison Lapper in Trafalgar Square may have caused a rift in public opinion but it has served to concentrate attention on disabled people and the problems they face - particularly from a financial point of view.

THE statue of Alison Lapper in Trafalgar Square may have caused a rift in public opinion but it has served to concentrate attention on disabled people and the problems they face - particularly from a financial point of view.

For years the disabled suffered in silence as second class citizens but their voice has grown louder in recent years. They may be a minority but they are a very substantial one with a lot to shout about.

Society's attitude to disabled people today is dramatically different from 20 years ago.

However, their average income is less than half that of able-bodied people and many still face huge problems accessing everyday services, in education, transport and at work.

There are 6.8 million disabled people of working age in Britain - one in five of the total working population - and 30 per cent of them live below the official poverty line.

Those who rely on state benefits, or work for the national minimum wage, generally have weekly incomes that are far below the amount they need for an acceptable quality of life.

For those who depend solely on benefits, the deficit between the payments they receive and the minimum sum required is £200 a week or more, according to research for the Joseph Rowntree Foundation (JRF).

Researchers for the JRF found disabled people face extra costs in most areas of life - from major expenditure on essential equipment to additional bills for food, clothing, fuel, transport and leisure.

They suggest that a disabled person with high to medium mobility and personal support would need £533 a week to achieve an acceptable quality of life.

The equivalent figure for deaf people and those with impaired sight is estimated at £376 a week.

Costs for personal assistance are even larger, ranging from £44 per week for those with low-to-medium needs to £980 per week for those with high-to-medium needs.

There's also a considerable disparity between the income of those who are able to work and the amount of income they need to achieve an acceptable standard of living.

Someone working 20 hours a week on the minimum wage while claiming in-work benefits, for example, is likely to face a shortage of anything from £118- £189 a week, depending on the level of their needs.

Noel Smith, a research fellow at the Centre for Research in Social Policy at Loughborough University and co-author of the JRF study said: "Official statistics show that 30 per cent of disabled people are in poverty but these figures are based on income and don't take into account the additional costs of disability.

"Our research highlights just how substantial these additional costs are and so it clearly shows that the extent of poverty among disabled people is seriously under-estimated."

Even maximum benefit levels fall well short of meeting the true costs of disability and many disabled people in paid work cannot achieve the income required to meet their needs, says Smith.

"Much could be achieved if society was prepared to fund the sort of improved support services that would reduce costs that currently fall on individuals.

"But disabled people also need more income so they can achieve an acceptable quality of life and come closer to achieving a "level playing field" with non-disabled people."

Anne McGuire, the Minister for Disabled People, says the time has come to do things differently and give confidence to millions of disabled people that they are no longer an afterthought.

"While there has been progress towards equality for disabled people, the pace of change has been slow," she said. "The challenges are still enormous. Wherever you look, you will find that disabled people are worse off."

In a keynote speech to industrialists last week she said everyone - from the very top of the office to the shop floor - needs to ask difficult questions of ourselves and our businesses.

"For example, why do disabled people get paid less than non-disabled people, and why are they more likely to have no qualifications?

"Our public institutions need to give serious thought to the needs of disabled people. This should not be a tick box exercise but integral to organisations' culture."